The Story of St. Peter's of the Valley Episcopal Church

St. Peter's of the Valley Episcopal Church in Basalt, Colorado came into being through the vision of the Diocese of Colorado, Christ Episcopal Church in Aspen, and an intrepid group of Roaring Fork Valley Christians. St. Peter's is a vibrant, exciting, welcoming Christian community.

In the Beginning (1989-1991)

1989 -Fr. Robert Babb (Rector of Christ Episcopal Church, Aspen) asked Karen and Scott Smith to lead a new mission downvalley with Becky and Bill Ayres as the Christ Church Vestry representatives.

The first services were held in the Growing Years Day Care center in summer 1989 with ten families attending.

Fr. Babb, supply priests, and Fr. Morry Hollenbaugh as well as lay ministers officiated at services

Fr. Morry, retired from the Diocese of Southern Ohio, became St. Peter's permanent volunteer supply priest and led the congregation through the formative years.

The Formative Years (1991 -2000)

1991-St. Peter's, in need of larger space due to growth of the congregation moved to the Basalt Methodist Church and held Sunday evening services as Fr. Morry continued to lead us.

The Find Us Faithful capital campaign was initiated with the goal of raising funds for a home for St. Peter's, financial aid for three years for a Vicar, and capital improvements to Christ Church.

1998 -Christ Church purchased the Growing Years Day Care Center for St. Peter's; the building was remodeled and a sanctuary added on.

St. Peter's shared the building with the Growing Years Day Care Center until 2006.

A search committee was formed.

Our First Vicar (2000 -2005)

The Reverend Mary Kate Schroeder, a young priest from Boulder who had served as an assistant in South Bend, Indiana, was called to lead St. Peter's. She celebrated her first Eucharist with us on September 3, 2000.

Through the generosity of the Haydock family, St. Peter's purchased a Vicarage in Elk Run.

Three Sunday services were offered and Godly Play was instituted.

The young people in the church participated in mission trips to Wyoming, Mexico and southwestern Colorado.

St. Peter's grew with the hope and intention of becoming a self-sustaining Parish.

Mother Mary Kate was called to serve as Priest-in-charge at St. Aidan's in Boulder in April 2005.

Transition (2005-2008)

Fr. Kelsey Hogue, former Missioner for the Northwest Region, was called to serve as our Vicar in June 2005.

In 2006, we remodeled the building and helped the Growing Years School find an alternate space in Basalt.

In June 2006 Fr. Kelsey was called to serve a parish in Nebraska.

Fr. Roy Baker, a Brit from Wyoming, became our interim Vicar in August 2006. He gave us hope and renewed excitement. His untimely death from cancer in June 2007 left a hole in our hearts.

St. Peter's was ably served by several wonderful supply priests for the remainder of 2007 and in January 2008 Fr. Denis Ford, a retired priest from Ouray, kept us together as our part-time Interim Vicar.

A new, larger Vicarage in Blue Lake was purchased in anticipation of calling a new Vicar.

A New Beginning

In January 2009, the Reverend Margaret Austin accepted our call to become our full-time Vicar. She has infused the congregation with joy and excitement with her charm, wit, and boundless energy, forging a special bond with the many families with young children in the congregation.

With great joy and faith in the future of our mission, we celebrated with the Bishop of Colorado as he installed Margaret as our Vicar on December 6, 2009. Thanks Be To God. Margret served St. Peter's well until 2013.

To Date

We now welcome Father Will Fisher to our congregation. He has joined us from New York and we look forward to blessing s to come as he leads our church!